Adjustable loom reed



Dec. 28 1926;

r E. R. HOLMES ADJUSTABLE LOOM REED Filed Oct. 23. 1924 \Miilllilllllllfi Patented Dec. 28, 1925.

UNITED srarss' PTENT OFFICE.

ELBRIDGE R. HOLMES, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO CROMPTON 85 KNOWLES LOOM WORKS, OF WORCESTER, MASEACHUSET'IS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

ADJUSTABLE LOOM REED.

Application filed October 23, 1924.

This invention relates to improvements in reeds for looms and more particularly to means for adjusting the vertical position of the reed with respect to the lay.

In weaving certain fabrics such as silks it is found that thereed dents wear so as to develop notches at the point where the filling is beaten into the cloth. In time the line of heat up becomes irregular and the edges of the notches become sharp and chafe or cut the yarn.

It is the principal object of my present invention to provide means for varying the vertical position of the reed with respect to the lay so as to present a new surface of the reed to the fabric when the reed becomes worn to an objectionable extent.

It is a more particular object of my invention to provide for adjusting the vertical position of the reed without removing the latter from the lay, this result being obtained by the employment of cooperating inclined surfaces located between the lay and the reed support. While the invention is capable of either raising or lowering the reed, yet it is found desirable to have the reed start in its highest position and successively lower as occasion demands so that the mutilatedportion of the reed will be below the fabric and in such position as not to come in contact with either plane of the warps when the latter are separated to form a shed.

It is a more specific object of myinvention to provide means accessible from the end of the lay for adjusting the reed vertically and for holding the adjustment.

lVith these and other objects in view which will appear as the description, proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings wherein I have shown one form of my invention,

Fig. 1 is a vertical section through a loom lay having my invention applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1 showing the reed in highest position,

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the reed in a lower position than that shown in Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a port on of the lay showing the manner of mounting Serial No. 745,512.

and adjusting the reed support, certain parts being broken away to illustrate the invention more clearly, and

Fig. 5 is a section on line 55 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings it will be seen that I have provided a lay 10 supported in any approved manner by lay swords, one of which is shown in the drawings, and having mounted thereon a back stay 12 held thereto in any approved manner. The lay swords are extended to support hand rail 13 each end of which is vertically'adjustable with respect to the'lay 10 by means of a bolt 14 which passes through a slot 15 formed in the lay sword. An upper reed holder 16 is received in the lower face of the hand rail and is slotted to receive the upper end of reed 17. The lay 10 may be provided with race plate 18 and the back stay 12 may be provided with the usual glass rod 19. The matter thus far described is of the usual construction and forms no part of my present invention.

In carrying out my invention I provide the back stay 12 with a slot defined between the body of the stay and front wall 31 extending from said stay. The bottom of this slot is provided with a plurality of spaced pockets 32 having upwardly facing inclined surfaces 33. Each pocket is adapted to receive a block 34 which is wedge shaped and provided with a downwardly facing inclined surface 35 of the same pitch as surfaces 33. Each pocket 32 receives one of the blocks 34 and the inclined surfaces cooperate so that as the block is moved longitudinally it will rise or fall according to the direction in which it is moved.

In orderto connect all of the blocks together I rivet them to a flexible piece of sheet steel or other material indicated at 36, oneend of which is bent to form an eye 37, which receives a nut 38. One end of the back stay is recessed to receive a plate.

39 held to the back stay by screws 40 and having rotatably mounted thereon a screw 41 the threaded portion of which passes through the nut 38 and the bent ends of the strip 36. The plate 39 is perforated as at 42 and has extending therethrough a resilient wire lock 43 having a bent end 44 extending preferably in a direction opposite to the outside looking portion 45. The end till of said portion 15 is received by the slot in the screw 41 as indicated in Figs. 4: and 5 to prevent accidental rotation of said screw and retain the setting of the blocks. Resting on top of the strip 36 is a lower reed holder 46 the upper face of which is slotted to receive the bottom of the reed 17 Under normal conditions the parts will be as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2 with the blocks 34, the strip 36, holder 46, and reed 17 in highest position. As the dents of the reed wear so as to require a new beating up surface the lock 45 will be removed from the slot in screw 41 and the latter turned in such a way as to allow the nut 38 to move away from the plate 39. This will be accompanied by a downward motion of the blocks 34, the weight of the reed acting through the flexible strip 36 to move said blocks down the inclined surfaces When the reed has been lowered sufiiciently the lock 15 will be inserted in the slot of screw 41 and the hand rail 13 lowered correspondingly. This operation may be re peated until the blocks are in their lowest position, the worn part of the reed lying below the tops of the race plate and glass rod and out of engaging position with the fabric being woven.

It will be seen by referring to Fig. 2 that the strip 36 extends upwardly from the nut 38 to the adjacent block 3% but these two members can be spaced apart sufiiciently so that the angle of the strip will be negligible.

It is to be understood that the back stay 12 is to be considered a part of the lay and that the inclined surfaces need not necessarily be disposed as indicated in the drawings.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided means interposed between the lay and reed to vary the distance between them, said means including inclined surfaces which are movable relatively with respect to each other from a readily accessible point on the lay so as not to require the removal of the reed when an adjustment is to be made. This latter feature makes it possible to adjust the position of the reed without disturbing the cloth or yarn. Also, I have provided a simple lock to hold the parts in adjusted position.

Having thus described my invention it will be apparent that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In a loom, a lay having an inclined surface thereon, a reed, a member interposed between the inclined surface and the reed, means to move the member along the inclined surface to vary the position of the reed, and flexible connections between the means and the member.

2. In a loom, a lay having an inclined surface thereon, a reed, a member interposed between the inclined surface and the reed, means fixed to the lay to move the member along the inclined surface, and a flexible element connecting the means and member, said member being movable relatively to the lay to move the reed.

3. In a loom, a lay having an inclined surface, a reed supported by the lay and mounted for vertical movement with respect thereto, a member interposed between the reed and the inclined surface and engaging the latter, means stationary with respect to the lay to move the member, and connections between the member and the means, one end of said connections being attached to the member and movable vertically as the latter and the reed are raised,- and the other end of the connections maintaining the same vertical position with respect to the lay for all vertical adjustments of the member and reed.

In a loom, a lay having an inclined surface formed thereon, a reed, a reed holder to receive the lower end of the reed and movable vertically with respect to the lay, a wedge shaped member located between the holder and the inclined surface on the lay and movable longitudinally with respect to the latter along the inclined surface, means for moving the wedge shaped member longitudinally of the lay, said means being located in substantially the same vertical position with respect to the lay in all adjusted positions of the wedge member, and flexible connect-ions between said means and member.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto afiixed my signature.

ELBRIDGE n. Hora ms. 

